As Dimitri's rampage comes to an end and the Dark Tower crumbles, Steppenwolf reunites with his father, Edmund, while Menniker mourns his father's apparent death. Some time later, Edmund arrives at the house of Mr. Arrunda and informs him that he needs to comply with the public vote to discard all technology. The man angrily refuses but his wife, Marta, allows Edmund and the other volunteers to take their things. While Arrunda pitches a fit, his neighbor Menniker gracefully hands his belongings over to his cousin Steppenwolf and asks him to stop by again. As soon as Steppenwolf leaves, Menniker turns to his state of the art technology that he had hidden away.

As the confiscation of advanced technology continues, Steppenwolf alerts his father to a growing number of dissenters, skulking in the shadows and wearing dark robes. He follows one of them to a meeting, where a cult like rally is underway and the dissenters appear to be preparing for war. Steppenwolf is quickly spotted and he jumps into one of their hover vehicles to escape. Unfortunately, the hooded cultists take to the sky and shoot him down.

In the present, Locke is shocked to witness the return of the Dark Legion. He sends a telepathic warning to Archimedes, who in turn warns a resting Knuckles the Echidna that danger is afoot. Just then, a bright flash of light erupts from a nearby forest as an army of black hooded cultists and machines march across the Floating Island. A Mechanaut notices a nearby heat signature, but Archimedes teleports Knuckles out of the way before the machine can spot them. Unfortunately, it simply picks up on their heat signature again. As the Mechanaut closes in, Archimedes teleports on to its shoulder, distracting it while Knuckles lands a surprise attack.

Knuckles rendezvous with the Chaotix, hoping to get some help facing the incoming onslaught. Archimedes suggests that they need to use subterfuge to defeat the invaders and Knuckles tells the group to scatter and wait for his signal. Unfortunately a group of legionnaires in a hover vehicle spot Vector and attack. Forced into action, Mighty helps Vector take out the Mechanauts while Espio sneaks on to a hover vehicle and knocks out its passengers. The Chaotix continue to fight the Dark Legion but find themselves overwhelmed by their sheer numbers. Knuckles tells the group to head north, but they're cut off by even more Legionnaires. Knuckles and his group surrender as the Legion's grandmaster, Kragok, reveals himself and offers Knuckles the chance to reclaim his birthright as an Echidna.

Knuckles meets Kragok, the first echidna he's seen since his father abandoned him.

Background Information

This issue's cover is the first part of a three-part image.

Though neither named nor introduced, the two adult echidnas on either side of Menniker and Steppenwolf during Edmund and Dimitri's presentation are presumed to be their mothers, Cynthia-Wa and Siwa-Ra.

Cameos & References

When Edmund and Steppenwolf confiscate technology from the citizens Echidnaopolis, Menniker is seen giving his cousin a Sega Genesis/Mega Drive.